Yearning for Something
by neoncolorexplosion
Summary: Andie has to decide where her loyalties lie, with the Shepard gang or the old gang. She has to make this decision while struggling with an addiction that Tim had been supplying. Andie must choose between staying with Tim or getting out and being with the one boy she truly loves. (Story continues after Every Minute Counts, a sequel of sorts. EMC doesnt need to be read first.)
1. Chapter 1

The rain had started again. We were all gathered in the vacant lot, each group huddled accordingly to our gangs. I glanced over towards the group closest to me and saw familiar faces. Two-Bit, Pony, Soda, Steve, and Darry all talking in hushed tones to one another. It felt weird not being alongside them.

"Andie," Tim's voice snapped me back to reality.

I stared at him, "What?"

"Just making sure you're with us."  
"I'm here, aren't I?" I reassured him.

Several things came with the territory of being Tim's girl. One of them was allegiance to his gang, something that had proved difficult for me to master. It was a tedious adjustment, having to switch my habits from going to the Curtis' house everyday to mulling around with the Shepard family. To compare the two families would be like comparing ice and fire, two polar opposites with nothing in common other than the fact they're elements. The same goes for the Shepard and the Curtis family, polar opposites, the only commonality the fact that they are both greasers. The hardest part was the inability to talk with Soda on a daily basis, but as time wore on, it became easier; I just had to distance myself from the old gang. Shepard's gang is like have clones of Dally Winstons walking around, barking out orders. It gets overbearing and over stimulating at times. I yearn for silence and the ability to hear myself think without having to tune everything out.

"The socs should be here soon," I overheard Darry tell the old gang. "Pony, Soda, remember if the cops show up you two make a run for it. The rest of us can end up in jail, but you two would get thrown into the boy's home. You hear me?"

I glanced over and saw them nod their heads in acknowledgement.

"Andie," said Tim.

I turned my attention back to him. I walked up to him and slinked my arm around his waist, reassuring him that I was with him, no matter what.  
"That's my girl," he said.

I instinctively moved my lips to the right side of my mouth.

We were all waiting for the final rumble between us greasers and the socs to commence. According to Miss. Cherry Valance, this was the rumble to settle the score between the two social classes. If we win, the socs leave us alone for good; if they win, we let them be. This is only a temporary mask; we all know it won't last, but at least there will be a couple months of peace.

I glance over at the old gang again and habitually look for the tow-headed Dally Winston and skittish, puppy dog eyed Johnny Cade and then I remember, they're not there. Johnny's still in the hospital, the chances of him making it out of there alive are slim; Dally, however, I'm surprised he hasn't escaped from his hospital room yet. It's unlike Dallas Winston to miss a brawl, especially one as big as this.

The Mustangs pull up and socs spill out from the car. The tension grew and an eerie silence settled throughout the lot. Paul Holden steps forward from the socs' side and Darry steps out on our behalf. They went over the terms. Last thing I clearly remember was hearing Dally's voice as he rushed down into the field, marking the start of the rumble. The two sides clashed as the front lines hit one another. Things were chaotic. It proved difficult to make out who was who and what was happening.

"Hello, Andie dear," came a voice.  
I followed the voice until I saw which soc it came from. Once I saw him, dead sprinted to him and tackled him to the ground.

"Jimmy," I sneered, slugging him in the chin.

"Still haven't learned any manners, I see," he replied as he threw me off of him.

"How'd you get out of jail, you bastard," I retorted as I moved out of the way of his shoe.

"Good behavior," I wasn't fast enough and he kicked me in my left side.

I got up from the ground quickly and was able to get close to him. I instinctively reached for my blade in my back pocket. I didn't care that this was supposed to be a fair fight. This bastard didn't deserve fair; hell, he didn't deserve to be out of jail. He must have saw me go for my blade because he quickly reached for his, drawing his out first. This couldn't have gone better.

"Blade!" I yelled, garnering the attention of those closest to me. This created a cascade effect as I heard "blade" echo throughout the ranks. I couldn't help but smirk.  
This caught Jimmy off guard for a second, which I used to my advantage. I was able to disarm him, throwing the blade to the ground and elbowing him in the gut. He doubled over. My knee made contact with his nose, which produced a steady blood flow. Jimmy's hand went to his nose in attempt to stop the bleeding. I was able to get in a few more good punches before he gained the upper hand once again. He anticipated one of my punches, ducked and then threw one of his own, hitting me square in the jaw. However by this time the socs were retreating and Jimmy noticed this.

"Better scurry off with the rest of your friends," I told him, gingerly touching my jaw.

His eyes narrowed. I could tell he was debating whether to stay or not.

"Stay, see what happens when you're the only soc left amongst greasers," I warned him.

He looked around and saw that there were only a couple socs left and they were already heading out. He looked back, glared at me, and then retreated, following the rest of the cowards. I smirked with satisfaction. That bastard had nothing on me.

I jumped slightly when I realized that Tim was standing next to me.

"You okay?" he asked gruffly.

"Yeah, fantastic," I stated.

I studied his face, not too much damage done. His nose was probably broken, but seemingly that was the worse of his injuries. It was then that I looked around to see the rest of our friends. Pony and Dally were running off somewhere, most likely to the hospital to see Johnny. Pony wasn't looking to hot, he was running in a zigzagged line desperately trying to keep up with Dally. Steve was doubled over, Soda kneeled down next to him continuously talking to him.

"Lets go," Tim's voice interrupted.

I was almost going to tell him I'd meet up with him later so I could check on the old gang, but I thought better. I turned to leave with Tim; we were heading back to Buck's.


	2. Chapter 2

After the brawl, we all ended up at Buck's and drank for a bit, telling stories of our own individual fights. My mind was elsewhere, dwelling on Johnny and Ponyboy, praying they were both okay. A few shots in, I was over swapping war stories; I had heard enough of everyone's highlights reel and snuck away to the back porch. Here I was able to have a few precious moments of uninterrupted silence. I could think without interruption. I lit a cigarette, going through a couple before heading back in.

"There's my girl," said Tim when he finally saw me.

I gave him a half-smile in return.

"Where'd you sneak off to?" he asked.

"Out back. Had to grab a smoke," I replied.

He nodded in approval.

I motioned the guy behind the bar to pass me a beer. While he was getting that I dry-swallowed a couple of pills to help with the after effects of the rumble. Once I had my beer I took a couple of long swigs, only to find that I finished it within a few minutes.

"Come on Babe," I heard Tim say to me as he wrapped his arm around my waist. "Lets get you to bed."  
While I wasn't drunk, the rumble took a toll on me, which Tim could see. I let him guide me up the stairs and into the room. He pulled me into the bed with him and slowly peeled off my shirt. His armed swung around my waist and led me to fit the curvature of his body. Tim's lips met with my neck and began to work their magic; however, tonight, I was unimpressed by his actions and really wanted to just be left alone.

"Hey, you falling asleep?" he asked, in a somewhat gruff manner.

I only had the energy to mumble a response.

The last thing I remember was him pushing me off of him and him turning towards the wall, away from me. Not that I would've cared normally, but tonight I was too tired to even think about it or anything else for that matter. I welcomed the darkness as I slipped into silence.


End file.
